Photo Credit: Eric Fischer via Flickr
In the few years I’ve gotten to know the young professional set in Indy, I’ve consistently noticed one thing: they’re passionate about their neighborhoods.
I love that people can be enthusiastic about where they live. They’re diehard fans of their local businesses, eating at the pub the next street over, buying their best friend’s birthday gift at the boutique a block away. It’s a great passion to possess, except, of course, when it comes to leaving the bubble.
I’ve spent most of my life living on the edge of a city. In a lot of ways it’s a pain. There’s plenty of time in a car getting from place to place. There’s limited opportunity to hit the town at night because there’s always the drive home waiting at the end. But if you ask me to go to Broad Ripple, I will. Or Carmel. Or Mass Ave. Or Irvington. Or any other neighborhood or–gasp–suburban community that makes up the metropolitan area. I don’t feel confined to a bubble and I don’t put up a fight if an event a friend invites me to attend happens to be outside of my 3 block radius. I’ve listened to people complain about a 15-minute trek. I’ve seen tweets cursing the hassle of a trip to the next neighborhood over. I’m here to tell you: It’s REALLY not that big of a deal.
The perk of Indianapolis is that it’s one of the easiest cities to get around. Even 465 in rush hour doesn’t compare to the complete standstills I experienced on the Nashville interstate during my college intern days. And nothing can be more miserable than Veteran’s Blvd. in the New Orleans suburbs, where traffic creeps at unbearable slowness in peak hours.
But aside from Indy being a well laid out city, it’s important to celebrate the fact that there are so many great areas to spend your time. Don’t put up a fight and accept moving about the city with a smile, even if it means you have to get in your car for 15 minutes. It’s important to keep your neighborhood pride alive and well. But at the end of the day, remember to have an even bigger pride for the city.
